The name Seguin comes from an old Native American word sutquin, meaning “the place where the sea vomits.” The sea can be exceptionally rough here, especially when a fast tide coming down the Kennebec River meets an opposing strong wind coming off the ocean. In addition, the island is often shrouded in fog, making it a hidden navigational hazard.

Seguin Island is situated roughly two and a half miles off the mouth of the Kennebec River, and it was thought that a light there could serve both as a coastal beacon and as an entrance light to this important waterway. It is thus not surprising that Seguin Island Lighthouse is one of the oldest on the Atlantic coast, having been authorized by President George Washington. The lighthouse is also the second one to be built in what is now the state of Maine.

The plans for Seguin’s first tower called for a simple, wooden structure. A Commissioner Coxe asked that the new lighthouse include “a costly and firm stone foundation, if necessary, a stone cellar to the house, a capacious and secure oil vault.” He also wanted “the light House to be wider & higher, of course stouter, and the lantern is to be first rate.” Some modifications to the original instructions had to be made – for instance, a deep foundation was impractical in the hard rock at the building site.

The lighting of the tower was delayed by a lack of oil, wicks, and chains for hanging the lamps. A Mr. Wheeler built the original lamp that was reportedly one of the best made in the United States. The first keeper was Major John Polerecsky, who had been appointed months before the station was ready so he could make preparations for farming and gardening on the island, although he would not begin receiving his salary until the light started shining.

In 1804 Polerecsky was replaced by Jonathan Delano, who served for years without incident, until 1825, when Collector Isaac Ilsley reported: “I have lately been informed that Jonathan Delano, Keeper of Seguin Light House had fraudulently disposed of Lamp Wicks from that establishment, the evidence of the fraud is in the affidavit of Lewis Demot herewith enclosed, and which I believe to be true. The Wicks are now in this Office and are good and not damaged, or refuse as said to be by Spencer, son of the Keeper.”

The Delano family had evidently traded thirty-six dozen acceptable lamp wicks, intended for use in the fifteen lamps used in the tower, for tin ware being sold by Lewis Demot. John Salter replaced Keeper Delano on March 2, 1825.

Due to their meager salaries, keepers were forced to be frugal and creative, but dishonorable acts were not tolerated. Thomas Day, keeper at Sequin Island in 1880, wrote to the inspector over a rumor he had heard. "I understand that the Keeper of Boon Island Light is removed for not paying money for Republican Campaign expenses. Will you be kind enough to inform me of the fact, as myself and two asst. have been asked for $79 for campaign expenses." The inspector was "of the opinion that these poor people ought not to be expected to contribute so largely from their meager pay." Regrettably, politics did often play heavily in the appointment of keepers.

Aerial view of Seguin Island Lighthouse Photograph courtesy U.S. Coast Guard

The first wooden tower quickly deteriorated and had to be replaced in 1819. Congress allocated $2,500 to build a new stone tower as a replacement. This tower was eventually also worn down by the weather, and in 1856 Congress appropriated $35,000 “for rebuilding the light house tower and keeper’s dwelling and for supplying and fitting first order illumination apparatus.” These improvements remain on the island today. The cylindrical tower was built of cut granite blocks, and the one and a half story keeper’s duplex was built with bricks. The light on Seguin Island, produced by a Henry LePaute first-order Fresnel lens, shines 186 feet above the water, making it the highest focal plane in Maine. Most of that height, however, comes from the island’s 150-foot elevation above the sea.

Seguin Island is one of the foggiest places in the world – one year, the fog signal blew for almost one-third of the entire year, a total of 2,734 hours! In 1842, I.W.P. Lewis reported on the island’s fog signal. “At Seguin Island there is a very heavy bell on the summit of the island, near the light house, which is tolled by hand alone, and it therefore cannot be heard above the booming of the surf in calm weather.” The Annual Report of the Lighthouse Board for 1873 notes that a 10-inch steam-whistle fog signal was established at the station, giving blasts of eight seconds duration every fifty-two seconds. Three years later, the annual report recorded that a frame building had been built to provide housing for an assistant keeper and to shelter a backup fog signal. Finally, the report for 1889 noted that a stout, 32-foot-square brick fog signal building, the one that stands today, was constructed and outfitted with duplicate sets of machinery.

The Lighthouse Board’s report of 1895 notes that “A railroad was built connecting the boathouse at the landing with the signal house. A car was provided and a hoisting engine was set up for hauling up coal and supplies.” Years later, a keeper’s wife was riding in the car with her 18-month old daughter when the car broke loose and rocketed down the track. The wife was able to toss her baby to safety, but she ended up being hurt quite badly.

Boathouse and railroad at Seguin Island Photograph courtesy Library of Congress

Seguin Island had a unique visitor in 1936 when the Secretary of Commerce granted Mr. Achie Lane of Northeast Harbor, Maine, a one-year license to dig with hand tools on the island for “supposedly burried pirate treasure.” By early November of that year, Mr. Lane wrapped up his treasure hunting operations on the island, concluding that no such treasure existed. Graciously, the lighthouse property “was left in suitable condition by Mr. Lane.”

After the station was automated in 1985, local citizens formed the Friends of Seguin Island to ensure the preservation and upkeep of the lighthouse. In 1989 the Coast Guard leased the station to the group, and in 1998 the group received full ownership of the station through the Maine Lights Program. Each summer, the Friends hire caretakers to live at the Seguin Island Lighthouse, greet visitors, operate the museum, keep the grounds clean, and do necessary repairs and upkeep to the station.

In 1998, the Coast Guard announced plans to replace the station’s 1857 first-order Fresnel lens with a modern plastic solar-powered optic, claiming that the 17,000-foot underwater cable needed to power the lens had become too expensive to maintain. After the Friends of Seguin Island asked that the historic lens remain in operation, the Coast Guard offered an alternative where the Fresnel would be turned off but remain in its place, with the new plastic lens mounted nearby.

A petition drive was mounted and over 7,200 signatures collected demanding the Fresnel lens be kept operational. In March 2000, Senator Olympia Snowe of Maine announced that the Coast Guard had agreed to leave the lens in operation. Its fixed white light is the only remaining first-order lens operating north of Rhode Island, and the last continuously operating first-order lens north of Virginia. The lighthouse is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and the tower and attached museum are open to the public.

References

1. Lighthouses of Maine, Bill Caldwell, 1986.
2. Annual Report of the Light House Board.
3. Maine Lighthouses: Documentation of Their Past, J. Candace Clifford and Mary Louise Clifford, 2005.

The Friends of Seguin Light maintains a list of charter boats that offer excursions to the island. Part of the keeper's dwelling contains a small museum, and visitors are permitted to climb the tower.